Bugland: Sting Like A Bee

The Pale Green Assassin Bug is one of nearly 200 species in North America. The bugs in this genus, Zelus luridus, are beneficial predators, and eat all manner of pest insects including boll weevils, leafhoppers and moth caterpillars. And how’s this for some carnage? They ooze a sticky substance on their legs that they use to catch dinner. Once they’ve got their prey in their clutches, they use their beaks like straws to consume the insides. When an Assassin Bug bites a human, it can be quite painful, like a bee sting, but far from deadly. This Pale Green Assassin Bug was photographed in Park Hill by Mark Silverstein.